Pop icons kiss, make up
2005-12-15 13:18
Tokyo - George Michael said on Thursday he will attend next week's wedding of fellow gay pop icon Elton John and will probably tie the knot himself in June under Britain's new civil partnership law.
In a new gesture of conciliation since a public spat, the British singer said he and his fiance Kenny Goss will take part in Wednesday's small wedding reception in Windsor, west of London, between Elton John and David Furnish.
As for his own marriage plans, Michael said he and Goss had not set a date.
"I don't want a wedding as such but I think we will probably sign the papers on our 10th anniversary which is in June," Michael, 42, told a news conference in Tokyo.
Elton John last year openly criticised George Michael for not performing more, leading to a testy feud between two of the world's most prominent gay entertainers.
Under the Civil Partnership Act, British gays and lesbians can enter civil partnerships from December 21 that give them the same rights as heterosexual couples.
George Michael saluted both the law and the growing number of openly gay entertainers as a sign of greater tolerance in Britain - and soon, he hopes, the world.
Asked why more performers here do not come out of the closet, Michael said, "It makes me very sad to hear that it's not easy for Japanese artists to do so.
"Because actually now in Britain it really doesn't matter. We have several openly gay pop stars and the girls don't seem to mind," he said with a smile.
The pop star is promoting the documentary, George Michael: A Different Story, which charts his career from his stardom in Wham! to his notorious 1998 arrest for lewd conduct at a public toilet in Beverly Hills - an incident that finally forced him to be open about his homosexuality.